Modernly, it is common practice among suppliers of stoves for commercial and home use to provide the cooking unit with a safety shutoff system that uses a thermoelectric solenoid that interrupts the flow of flammable gas when the flame has been extinguished. This gas valve is common in the industry, and is very user friendly in its operation. The user presses the control knob in, which overrides the solenoid spring allowing the gas to flow to the burner, at which time the flammable gas is ignited causing an emf current flow that energizes the solenoid, and keeps the gas supply flowing. When the flame is extinguished, the current stops, and the solenoid de-energizes, cutting off the flow of flammable gas.
The current designs of gas valves force the flammable gas to flow from the rear of the valve towards the front of the valve, which has the consequence of lengthening the control know, and therefore the offset to the front of the appliance.
Another well-known shortcoming of these valves, hereinafter known as standard valves, is that they are frequently awkward to install, because of the locating dimensions of the inlet and the exhaust. In commonly known constructions, either the distance from the gas-conducting valve assembly tube to the front plate of an appliance is relatively large or these constructions are built relatively high.